1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to hair care compositions. More particularly, the invention relates to hair shampoo, hair conditioner, hair spray, and hair setting and styling compositions comprising Hydrogenated Tallow Betaine or its cosmetically acceptable salt as an active ingredient in a suitable carrier.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Hair shampoos contain anionic detergents, as active ingredients, which serve to foam and clean hair. These anionic detergents, while extremely effective in their functions of cleansing and foaming, tend to be harsh to hair's surface, leaving hair in an overly dry, unmanageable state. Furthermore, the hair is rendered susceptible to electrostatic charge accumulation which promulgates the undesirable condition known as fly-away. To mollify these adverse effects, it is the usual practice to incorporate selective ingredients into the shampoo formulation, other than those which contribute to product aesthetics. These selective mollifying additives, while effective in providing greater manageability and hair conditioning, unfortunately interfere with and reduce the anionic detergent's effectiveness in cleansing and foaming.
Hair conditioners and creme rinse preparations, on the other hand, employ cationic surfactants as their key ingredients. These materials, usually quaternary ammonium compounds, are substantive to the negatively charged keratinaceous protein of hair. Because of their substantive properties, treatment of hair with a hair conditioner containing cationic quaternary ammonium compounds (generally after shampooing) provides the hair with a lubricating surface film which allows for easy combing. Hence, knots and tangles, encountered in hair combing after shampooing, are easily dissipated through hair treatment with a cationic hair conditioner. Notwithstanding their desirable characteristics, cationic hair conditioners formulated with quaternary ammonium compounds tend to overcondition the hair, making the hair undesirably heavy, "bodiless" and unattractive in appearance.
Hair setting lotions and hair sprays are usually based upon polymeric resins which provide hair fixative effects. Hair is given rigidity through application of these products enabling the hair to hold a style configuration in place. Plasticizers are also formulated into the product which provide pliability to the films of the polymeric resin coating the hair. The plasticizers allow the resin film to bend, instead of rupturing or breaking, under the stress of slight hair movement. However, the total hair holding potential of the polymeric hair fixative is reduced when plasticizers are incorporated. As a result, the strength of the hair configuration is weakened and the hair style is shortlived.
We have now discovered, surprisingly, that a small amount of a specific amphoteric surfactant, Hydrogenated Tallow Betaine, when incorporated with the key ingredients of a shampoo, cationic hair conditioner, or resinous hair fixative product can offset the incumbent deficiencies of these toiletry products. Hydrogenated Tallow Betaine is compatible with anionic surfactants, cationic surfactants and polymeric resins in their respective formulation environment. It is capable of promoting the favorable properties of those ingredients while sequestering and diminishing any disadvantages imparted to hair.
Certain betaines, as surfactants, are used by the prior art. For example: U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,960,742 and 4,348,292 disclose cleaning and detergent concentrates containing betaines; U.S. Pat. No. 4,166,845 discloses antidandruff compositions containing 10 to 30% by weight of a betaine detergent; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,375,421 pertains to viscous liquids, pastes and gels useful in various cosmetic, toiletry and cleansing compositions containing 5 to 25% by weight of alkylamido betains.